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May 3, 2018

(If you're here for the GIVEAWAY...the details are at the bottom of the blog post!)

The theme for the Island Batik April Challenge was Looking Back, Vintage Quilts Inspiring New Creations. (Yes...at some point I will actually get a project finished and posted before the end of the month like I'm supposed to.)

While I consider myself a modern quilter, I also love the history of quilts and quilting and truly appreciate vintage and traditional quilts. There's something very special about being a quilter and continuing an art/craft that generations of women before me have done. Initially my plan was to modernize something from The Farmer's Wife Sampler Quilt. Instead, I ended up having the opportunity to pattern test a new paper-piecing pattern from Melinda @melisaswapaholic.

Sampler quilts first became popular in the mid-1800s as quilters moved away from central medallion quilts and into more grid-like block quilts. (Personally, I love sampler quilts because I can made a bunch of different blocks then just sew them all together. Voila...a quilt!) Foundation piecing has been around since the 18th century. Muslin or scrap fabric was originally used as a stabilizer though more recently paper has been used. (For me, nothing beats the precision of paper-piecing.) For more info on the history of sampler quilts, there's a great article on Craftsy.

I purchase most of my pantographs online from Urban Elementz as they have a great selection of fun, modern longarm quilting patterns. They even have FREE patterns you can download and print!

If you want to make your own version of this paper piecing pattern, Melinda is hosting a sew along with this pattern beginning May 6. It's only three blocks a week, and I highly recommend this pattern whether you're new to paper piecing or a seasoned pro. You can check out the Instagram hashtag #AllTheTrianglesSamplerQuiltSewAlong for more details.

Go to Melinda's Craftsy shop SwapaholicQuiltPatterns and leave a comment on this blog post with your favorite paper-piecing pattern.

Follow @mel_is_a_swapaholic on Instagram. Come back here and leave a comment on this blog post letting me know you follow her on Instagram.

I will use a random number generator to select the winning comment the evening of Saturday, May 5. (I'll be in Columbus, NE for my son's baseball tournament so the exact drawing time depends on what time we get back to our hotel after a full day of games.) If you are a no-reply blogger, please leave me your email address so I have a way to contact you if you win. Even if you aren't the pattern winner, you can always purchase the pattern and join in the sewalong that starts May 6!